Coresidency of Immigrant Groups in a Diverse Inner-City Neighborhood of Whitechapel, London

A single family occupying one residential unit is the typical residential arrangement in cities of the Global North. However, specific communities tend to practice coresidency, wherein several families share the same residential unit. In this study, we evaluate immigrant groups’ coresidency tendencies in London’s East End Whitechapel neighborhood, through a door-to-door survey and interviews. We differentiate between horizontal and vertical family structures and find that a sizable percentage (44.4%) of the residential units were shared by two or more families. At the neighborhood level, we show that the segregated residential pattern of groups was correlated with the pattern of coresidency, indicating that the uneven spatial concentration of ethnic groups led to high densities of families in specific parts of Whitechapel. The interviews reveal that coresidency is not merely a result of economic constraints but also a residential preference reflecting the need for cohabitation with extended family members.